MOZAMBIQUE: MORE THAN FIVE MILLION SIM CARDS BLOCKED

The three mobile phone operators in Mozambique — M-Cel, Vodacom and Movitel — have blocked a total of 5.7 million unregistered SIM cards whose owners missed the Dec 1 deadline for registration.

The deadline was set by the regulatory body, the Mozambique National Communications Institute (INCM), which warned of heavy fines for companies which fail to block unregistered SIM cards.

The director of postal and telecommunications services in the INCM, Massingue Apala, told a media conference here Thursday that in the weeks preceding the deadline about two million SIM cards were registered out of more than seven million which were in an “irregular situation”.

The subscribers whose cards have been blocked will only be able to use them again, once they have registered them with the operators, said Apala.

The number of registered SIM cards is 12,439,070, he announced, and the total number yet to be registered is 5,727,292.

“The objective of blocking SIM cards is to promote the responsible use of telephones and guarantee the protection of citizens,” said Apala. The process was “irreversible”, he added, and since it began more than six years ago, users have had more than enough time to register their cards.